Chlorine Dioxide use for the COVID-19 pandemic

Chlorine Dioxide is a highly effective, low-toxicity DISINFECTANT that is uniquely valuable at this time.

COVID-19 problems Chlorine Dioxide can help solve:

Shutdown of economy

Options to help

Use routine, effective disinfection methods to make businesses safer to re-open
  • Use humidifiers in occupied areas, including periodic use of low-level chlorine dioxide
  • Provide employees with personal extra-fine mist spray bottles with chlorine dioxide
  • Can use other slow-release devices
  • Disinfect businesses regularly, deeply and quickly via workers wearing PPE and using foggers, sprayers, or fog "bombs"

Advantages

  • Humidity and chlorine dioxide are known to reduce pathogen contagion in air.
  • Chlorine Dioxide kills bacteria, mold & biofilm, so will help control these in humidifiers and air
  • Chlorine dioxide also kills pathogens on places it lands
  • Airborne chlorine dioxide drifts in air to reach and disinfect more surfaces than hand-wiping
  • Employees can easily disinfect minor surfaces continually
  • Can quickly disinfect hands, even for small concerns

Related studies

PPE shortages

Options to help

  • Personal bottles of Chlorine Dioxide disinfecting spray can be provided to healthcare workers.
  • Workers can periodically spray masks and other PPE to more safely wear for longer times.

Advantages

  • Allows healthcare workers to more safely wear same PPE for longer time period
  • At correct concentrations, spray is safe to inhale and mild on skin
  • Fast kill of pathogens
  • Inexpensive
  • Little to no damage to clothing.



Related studies

Water shortages

Options to help

  • Individual spray bottles of liquid chlorine dioxide disinfectant can be provided to people for multi-purpose use
  • Use as liquid hand sanitizer spray that's quick to apply & mild on skin.
    *Whenever there is oil on hands, person needs to use soap or alcohol as well, to cut through oil.
  • Spray frequently on porous and non-porous minor surfaces or broad areas
  • Spray in air periodically in crowded homes, businesses and other locations to disinfect both air and surfaces where lands.

Advantages

  • Portable tool enables spray disinfection of skin and surfaces without trips to hand wash stations.
  • Convenience promotes routine use, reducing spread of coronavirus among asymptomatic people.
  • Potent, rapid action kills pathogens with comparatively little water.
  • Kills many other disease-causing bacteria along with viruses
  • Greatly reduces airborne pathogens.
  • Disinfectant sprayed in air also reaches overlooked surfaces.
  • Milder on skin & surfaces, & much less expensive than alcohol (USD $0.40-$0.90/gal.)
  • Leaves practically no residue, so no rinsing required.
  • Cleans wastewater in eco-friendly manner.
  • Requires about 85% less chemical than bleach, so transportation is easier.

Related studies

Contagion in hospitals

Options to help

  • Decontaminate air with low levels of liquid Chlorine Dioxide disinfectant to kill pathogens in air and on surfaces
  • Use humidifiers for liquid solutions; or slow-release, extremely low concentration gas products

Advantages

  • Far simpler to implement than negative-pressure rooms
  • Very low expense
  • Kill pathogens at source locations, rather than drawing them across a room to be killed or filtered an HVAC vent
  • Also kills many pathogens that settle from air onto surfaces



Related studies

Pneumonia similar to COVID-19 from stagnant water systems

Options to help

  • When reopening after 3 or more weeks, water lines, systems, fixtures, misters, cooling towers, etc. need to be cleared of Legionella bacteria.
  • After flushing out stagnant water, choose effective disinfection method, which may include chlorine dioxide

Advantages

  • Chlorine dioxide kills many other pathogens in addition to Legionnaire's.
  • Although levels of residuals must be monitored, chlorine dioxide is an optimal water treatment for many situations.

** So employees receive appropriate treatment, they should be informed that accurate diagnosis of respiratory symptoms is important because these could be signs of Legionnaire's Disease (which is serious, but antibiotics treat well if caught early), and/or COVID-19. **

Related studies

Ventilator-associated pneumonia

Options to help

  • Prior to insertion of ventilator tube, have patient rinse with Chlorine Dioxide mouthwash, or spray mouth or brush teeth with Chlorine Dioxide product

Advantages

  • Reduce virus and bacteria load in patient's mouth
  • Decrease amount of pathogens that patient risks having introduced into lungs
  • Reduces dangers to healthcare worker inserting tube, by lowering amount of pathogens in sputum and aerosols exhaled by patient

Related studies

Food spoilage

Options to help

  • Rinse fresh produce with extremely low-level, 3 to 5 ppm chlorine dioxide rinse
  • Place slow-release chlorine dioxide packets in refrigerators and food storage areas
  • Mist refrigerators and food storage areas lightly with chlorine dioxide liquid

Advantages

  • Mold, bacteria and fungus (& viruses) are killed on fresh produce, so foods stay good much longer
  • Pathogens in refrigerators and other areas are killed, so food does not spoil as quickly
  • As food lasts longer, fewer grocery store trips are needed
  • Less food waste during times of shortages



Related studies

"Disinfecting tunnels"

Options to help

  • If continue to use tunnels, replace sodium hypochlorite (household bleach) with chlorine dioxide as disinfectant spray.
  • Or-- provide individual handheld fine-mist spray bottles filled with chlorine dioxide for personal disinfection

Advantages

  • Much less harsh on skin and lungs than bleach, and doesn't have cancer-causing effects
  • Requires less chemical to achieve same effectiveness against COVID-19 and many other bacteria
  • Kills germs more rapidly.
  • Little to no bleaching of clothing.
  • Comparatively better degree of effectiveness on porous surfaces.
  • Chemical activity finishes quickly, with little impact on environment, and no carcinogens.



Related studies

Current uses of Chlorine Dioxide in the Coronavirus Pandemic